Can  Germany  Be  Starved 
Into  Submission  ? 


BY 

Dr.  HUGO  SCHWEITZER 

PMt  PrMident,  Chemuu  Club  of  New  York  Cily;  late  Secretary,  N*w 
York  Section.  Society  of  Chemical  lodualry  of  Great  Britain- 
ex-Chairman  Verein  Deutscher  Chemiker,  New  York 
City;  Member  American  Chemical  Society 


An  Addre**  Delivered  before  the  German  Univertity  League, 
New  York,  N.  Y.,  February  3,  1915. 


Can  Germany  Be  Starved 
Into  Sutmission? 


BY 

Dr.  HUGO  SCHWEITZER 


PUBLISHED  BY 
Ije  (iennmt  ^^awrtian  ^iterarg  ^eienae  Committee 
150  Nassau  Street 
New  York 


Can  Germany  Be  Starved 
Into  Submission? 

By  Dr.  Hugo  Schiveitser. 


In  the  titanic  struggle  which  "Perfide  Albion" — that 
implacable  enemy  of  all  nations  which  threaten  to  rival 
or  surpass  her  in  trade  and  industry — has  forccil  upon 
Germany  it  is  difficult  to  determine  what  is  most  worthy 
of  our  admiration. 

Is  it  the  matchless  bravery  and  endurance  of  the  Ger- 
man soldiers  and  sailors,  or  the  admirable  leadership 
and  resourcefulness  of  the  officers  of  the  army  and  navy 
who  have  conducted  their  gallant  forces  from  victory  to 
victory,  so  that  today  all  of  Belgium  and  the  most  im- 
portant territory  of  France,  as  well  as  the  industrial  sec- 
tion of  Russia,  are  in  the  hands  of  the  Teutonic  allies  ? 

Is  it  the  magnificent  unity  of  this  great  and  wonder- 
ful country,  where  all  differences  in  creeds  and  politics, 
all  distinctions  between  rich  and  poor  have  vanished 
and  where  now  there  are  only  Germans  to  defend  home 
and  family  against  six  hostile  nations? 

Is  it  the  patriotic  love  and  enthusiastic  devotion  of  the 
German  women,  who  without  tears  in  their  eyes  but  with 
a  smile  on  their  faces,  see  their  dearest  ones  depart  for 
the  cruel  ordeal  to  risk  health  and  life  in  the  sodden 
trenches  ? 

Or  is  it  the  wise  forethought  and  the  infinite  care  with 
which  the  Civil  Government  of  Germany  is  scientifically 
meeting  the  problem  of  supplying  food  to  the  people  dur- 
ing war  times? 

As  was  to  be  expected,  the  subsidized  Anglo-Ameri- 
can press  has  failed  to  exhibit  intelligence  enough  to 
realize  that  precautionary  measures  in  this  direction  are 
not  alarming  signs  of  impending  famine  and  threatened 
destruction  of  the  people,  but  that  while  the  war  lasts,  the 
food  supply  and  the  cultivation  of  the  soil  must  be  so  ad- 
justed as  to  assure  the  proper  and  economic  feeding  of 
the  whole  people. 


3 


It  is  my  aim  tonight  to  demonstrate  to  you  the  masterly 
manner  in  which  the  German  Government  proceeds  to 
achieve  this  purpose. 

As  in  so  many  other  commercial  and  mdustnal  pur- 
suits, Germany  is  the  foremost  nation  in  agriculture,  the 
oldest  of  all  human  endeavors.  The  essential  objects  of 
agriculture  are  the  cultivation  of  the  soil  for  the  produc- 
tion of  carbohydrates  for  human  consumption,  and  of 
fodder  for  animals,  the  meat  of  which  furnishes  the  albu- 
men and  fats  in  our  diet. 

The  successful  tillage  of  the  soil  requires  proper  fertil- 
ization. The  beneficial  effect  of  barn  yard  manure  upon 
crops  was  well  established  thousands  of  years  ago  in  many 
countries  of  the  earth.  The  aborigines  of  New  England 
before  the  arrival  of  the  whites  even  knew  the  use  of 
"artificial  fertilizers"  since  it  is  stated  in  the  records  of 
the  Plymouth  Colony  that  Squantum,  a  friendly  Indian, 
showed  the  colonists  how  to  manure  their  corn  by  putting 
a  fish  in  each  hill. 

It  was  not,  however,  until  the  advent  of  Liebig,  the  great 
German  chemist,  about  three-quarters  of  a  century  ago, 
that  rationalism  took  the  place  of  empiricism  in  the  agri- 
cultural industry.  It  seems  marvelous  and  almost  incredi- 
ble to  the  uninitiated  that,  after  the  pursuit  of  agriculture 
for  thousands  of  years  and  the  firmly  rooted  belief  that 
the  accumulated  experience  of  ages  left  nothing  of  prac- 
tical value  to  be  learned  in  this  branch,  a  chemist,  who 
had  never  been  a  farmer,  had  never  held  a  plough,  never 
tilled  the  ground,  should,  from  his  desk,  teach  the  agri- 
culturist how  to  treat  the  soil  in  order  to  impart  to  it  con- 
stant productivity.  Yet  it  is  only  through  Liebig's  teach- 
ings of  the  treatment  of  the  soil  and  of  the  natural  laws 
governing  the  cultivation  of  the  ground  that  a  truly  ra- 
tional system  of  agriculture  has  been  evolved. 

Not  only  did  Liebig  enunciate  new  views  upon  agri- 
culture, but  he  also  devised  processes  for  the  production 
of  artificial  manures,  and  when  chemical  science  took  pos- 
session of  this  field  of  industry  most  things  were  ready, 
and  there  only  remained  to  be  carried  out  what  the  mind 
of  the  great  master  had  devised  and  foreseen.  To  replace 
the  nourishing  constituents  which  Liebig  had  shown,  by 
most  painstaking  research,  the  plants  took  from  the  soil, 
namely,  potash,  phosphoric  acid  and  nitrogenous  sub- 
stances, a  huge  industry  had  to  be  called  into  existence. 
.Artificial  fertilizers  were  made  from  the  nitre  fields  of 
Chile,  from  the  enormous  deposits  of  potash  salts  in 


4 


Germany,  from  the  rich  deposits  of  phosphates  of  our 
own  South,  of  the  Pacific  C_;uano  Islands  and  of  Algiers 
and  Tunis. 

It  is  evident  that  to  provide  for  a  bountiful  harvest  for 
next  year  it  became  incumbent  upon  the  Ciovernmcnt  to 
secure  sufficient  laborers  to  till  the  soil  and  to  arrange  for 
the  required  quantities  of  fertilisers. 

Tn  spite  of  the  fact  that  mobilization  made  especially 
heavy  drains  on  the  rural  population,  enough  farm  hands 
were  secured  for  the  necessary  work  in  the  fall,  and  on 
account  of  the  very  favorable  autumn  weather,  the  cul- 
tivation of  the  soil  went  on  as  usual,  the  condition  of 
winter  cereals  being  reported  as  most  excellent. 

The  self-sacrifice  of  the  general  public,  which  at  once 
recognized  the  vital  importance  of  carrying  on  work  in 
the  fields  during  the  war,  was  truly  astonishing.  At  the 
outbreak  of  hostilities,  half  grown  boys  and  girls  volun- 
teered their  services,  organizations  were  formed  to  bring 
men  and  women  who  were  out  of  employment  to  the 
farms,  where  they  were  set  to  work  under  the  guidance  of 
voluntary  overseers. 

The  fifteen  year  old  daughter  of  a  friend  of  mine  re- 
siding in  Gross-Lichterfelde,  near  Berlin,  during  our 
visit  last  August,  left  her  home  at  four  in  the  morning  to 
work  with  forty  other  girls  in  the  fields,  and  helped  to 
garner  the  crop  under  the  supervision  of  a  man  who,  with 
his  threshing  machine,  went  from  farm  to  farm,  giving 
his  services  gratuitously.  She  returned  at  nine  in  tiie 
evening  without  ever  complaining  of  weariness  and 
always  with  a  smiling  countenance. 

The  ladies  employing  servant  girls  coming  from  farms 
gave  them  permission  to  return  home  to  help  along.  Dur- 
ing this  furlough  the  ladies  did  their  own  work. 

Actors  and  actresses  whose  occupation  was  more  seri- 
ously affected  by  the  war  than  any  other  profession  toiled 
in  the  fields,  enjoying  this  enforced  vacation.  At  present 
the  skilled  farm  hands  among  the  prisoners  of  war  are 
being  employed  in  cultivating  the  soil,  and  it  is  fair  to 
presume  that  in  spring  the  work  will  go  on  as  usual.  All 
labor  will  be  especially  facilitated  since  electric  stations 
throughout  the  Empire  now  supply  cheap  power  for  the 
farmer,  which  is  very  welcome  while  draft  animals  are 
doing  service  in  the  war. 

In  regard  to  the  procuring  of  artificial  fertilizers,  we 
need  not  entertain  any  fear  as  far  as  the  potash  require- 
ments are  concerned.   Germany  is  in  fact  the  only  country 


5 


from  which  agriculture,  as  well  as  the  other  industries  of 
the  world,  are  able  to  draw  this  all  important  material. 
By  shutting  off  France,  England  and  Russia  from  these 
supplies,  the  interests  of  the  enemy  will  be  very  material- 
ly injured. 

Great  among  the  benefactors  of  mankind  is  the  German 
chemist,  A.  Frank,  who  in  1861  suggested  and  began  the 
commerical  exploitation  of  the  hitherto  useless  potash- 
salts  and  thus  created  Germany's  world  monoply !  From 
mining  2,300  tons  in  1861,  the  production  grew  to  12  mil- 
lion tons  in  1913!  Of  this  immense  quantity  90%  is 
employed  in  agriculture;  Germany  alone  utilizes  50%, 
while  the  United  States  takes  20%,  the  balance  being 
distributed  among  all  other  countries  of  Europe. 

The  most  important  nitrogenous  fertilizers  are  salt- 
peter, ammonia  salts  and  the  chemical  calciumcyanamide, 
known  commerically  as  limenitrogen.  Saltpeter  is  im- 
ported from  Chile  and  as  it  is  the  main  raw  material  for 
the  manufacture  of  nitric  acid,  which  is  absolutely  essen- 
tial in  the  production  of  gunpowder  and  explosives  of  all 
kinds,  it  has  always  been  recognized  as  contraband  of  war. 
In  1913  Germany  imported  about  800,000  tons  of  nitre,  of 
which  about  600,000  tons  were  used  for  fertilizing  pur- 
poses and  about  200,000  tons  for  the  manufacture  of  ex- 
plosives and  other  chemicals.  As  all  the  available  stock 
of  saltpeter  has  been  requisitioned  by  the  Government, 
agriculture  must  look  for  other  sources  of  nitrogenous 
fertilizers. 

Aside  from  the  fact  that  German  soil  has  been  so  well 
cultivated  for  the  last  50  years  that  the  lack  of  sufificient 
nitrogen  fertilizer  in  one  season  could  not  possibly  affect 
its  productivity,  the  country  has  at  its  disposal  several 
tried  methods  of  securing  substitutes  for  saltpeter.  In- 
asmuch as  the  Chile  nitre  beds  are  calculated  to  last  no 
longer. than  about  twenty  years,  German  chemists  have 
ever  been  on  the  lookout  for  that  emergency.  At  first 
they  provided  the  chemical  "sulfate  of  ammonia"  which 
was  obtained  from  the  nitrogenous  constituents  of  coal 
recovered  among  the  byproducts  in  the  coking  process. 
Of  the  500,000  tons  of  this  material  manufactured  in  1913. 
as  much  as  10%  was  available  for  export  in  times  of 
peace.  But  while  the  war  lasts  the  iron  and  associated 
coke-industry  will  not  be  fully  occupied  and  hence  a 
shortage  of  sulfate  of  ammonia  might  be  expected.  To 
make  up  any  deficiency,  the  synthesis  of  ammonia  from 
nitrogen  and  hydrogen  by  Professor  Haber  is  available. 


6 


which  in  its  infancy  already  furnished  40,000  tons,  and 
which  is  now  carried  out  on  a  very  large  scale. 

Sulfate  of  ammonia  and  saltpeter  possess  substan- 
tially the  same  efficiency  as  nitrogenous  fertilizers.  The 
other  chemical  "calciumcyanamide,"  wiiich  does  not  occur 
in  nature  but  was  first  made  artificially  by  the  German 
chemists,  Frank  and  Caro,  is  being  employed  for  the  same 
purpose  after  elaborate  tests  in  experimental  agriculture 
had  demonstrated  its  value.  Today  70,000  tons  of 
this  material  are  used  as  fertilizer  and  this  production 
could  also  be  easily  increased.  Both  products,  the  Haber 
ammonia  and  the  Frank-Caro  calciumcyanamide,  are  the 
outcome  of  processes  of  utilization  of  the  nitrogen  from 
the  air.  These  methods  are  especially  advantageous  for 
German  conditions,  as  they  consume  comparatively  little 
electric  pozver  and  require  only  such  raw  materials  as 
occur  in  great  abundance  in  Germany.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  process  of  utilizing  nitrogen  from  the  air  by  the  com- 
bination of  nitrogen  and  oxygen  under  the  formation  of 
nitric  acid  through  the  medium  of  the  electric  arc  and  the 
silent  electric  discharge,  or  under  the  influence  of  elec- 
trical tension  demand  much  electric  energy  and  can  there- 
fore be  executed  only  in  countries  rich  in  cheap  water 
power  such  as  Norway. 

The  Haber  and  Frank-Caro  processes  moreover  have 
the  great  advantage  that  they  easily  furnish  nitric  acid 
by  oxidation  of  ammonia,  and  in  these  very  days  with  the 
aid  of  the  German  Government,  factories  will  be  started 
where  the  manufacture  of  nitric  acid  from  ammonia  will 
be  economically  carried  out,  thus  furnishing  a  new  source 
for  the  supply  of  this  substance  which  is  so  badly  needed 
in  the  chemical  industries  and  in  the  manufacture  of  ex- 
plosives. If  Germany  in  this  manner  makes  herself  inde- 
pendent of  the  importation  of  saltpeter  she  will  retain 
almost  50  million  dollars  which  she  yearly  expends  abroad. 

Of  extreme  importance  for  agriculture  are  the  phos- 
phoric acid  fertilizers  of  which  the  super-phosphates  are 
particularly  well  known.  Germany  is  obliged  to  import 
a  large  quantity  of  phosphatic  raw  material  and  in  1913 
bought  from  us  alone  3  million  dollars  worth  of  phosphate 
rock. 

Here  again  the  fact  that  the  phosphates,  especially  the 
super-phosphates,  are  the  oldest  of  artificial  fertilizers 
and  have  been  so  largely  used  that  the  German  soil  is 
thoroughly  saturated  with  them,  will  prove  of  material 
benefit.    In  all  probability  there  will  not  be  any  decrease 


7 


in  yields,  if  for  one  season  phosphatic  fertilizers  were  dis- 
pensed with  altogether.  But  such  an  extreme  measure 
will  not  likely  be  necessary.  There  are  numerous  places 
in  the  valley  of  the  Rhine  and  of  the  Lahn  rivers  where 
phosphate-containing  rocks  abound.  These  are  not  as 
rich  as  our  Florida  phosphate,  but  may  be  relied  upon  to 
replace  a  goodly  quantity  of  the  imported  material.  To 
supplement  the  output  of  phosphate  fertilizer,  Germany 
can  utilize  the  slag  obtained  in  the  production  of  Thomas 
steel,  called  Thomas  slag,  which  is  already  a  well  known 
fertilizer  and  will  necessarily  enjoy  still  greater  popularity. 
But  of  much  greater  importance  as  a  source  of  phosphate 
fertilizers  are  the  provinces  of  Liege  and  Hennegau,  es- 
pecially the  district  around  Mons  where  very  valuable 
deposits  of  phosphatic  rock  occur.  In  1910  almost  400,000 
tons  of  this  material  were  mined  and  in  1913,  60,000  tons 
were  imported  into  Ciermany.  During  the  war  the  entire 
production  could  be  transported  there,  and  if  the  crude 
methods  prevailing  at  the  mines  were  improved  by  Ger- 
man engineering  and  chemical  skill  and  the  quantity  mined 
thus  increased,  then  Germany  could  make  up  any  de- 
ficiency caused  by  the  absence  of  shipments  from  the 
United  States,  the  Guano  Islands  and  Africa. 

For  the  chemicals  needed  to  rationally  fertilize  the  soil, 
nernian  agriculture  paid  in  1910  the  sum  of  100  million 
dollars.    What  astounding  results  have  been  obtained ! 

The  average  annual  yield  of  wheat  of  20  bushels  (60 
lbs.)  per  acre  in  the  five  year  period  of  1883/1887  has  in- 
creased for  the  five  year  period  of  1908/1912  to  31  bush- 
els. For  rye  the  corresponding  increase  is  from  16  to 
28^4  bushels  (56  lbs.)  :  for  summer  barley  from  24  to 
37>4  bushels  (48  lbs.)  ;  for  oats  from  3134  to  53  bushels 
(32  lbs.)  and  for  potatoes  from  130  to  190  bushels 
(60  lbs.). 

How  far  ahead  Germany  is  over  all  other  nations  ap- 
pears from  the  following  comparison,  the  more  so  since 
it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  German  soil  is  rather  poor 
and  has  been  drawn  upon  to  feed  her  people  for  nearly 
two  thousand  years. 

In  1912  Germany  raised  per  acre  3314  bushels  of 
7vheat  against  16  in  the  United  .States,  10  in  Russia  and 
20  in  Canada  and  France. 

Of  rye  the  yields  were  30  in  Germany,  17  in  the 
United  States,  14  in  Russia,  22  in  France  and  IQ  in 
Canada. 

8 


Germany  raised  403/2  bushels  of  barley  against  30  in  the 
the  United  States,  16  in  Russia,  26  in  France  and  30 
in  Canada. 

Of  oats  the  yields  are  54  in  Germany,  37^/2  in  the 
United  States,  23J<2  in  Russia,  35  in  France  and  42  in 
Canada,  and  for  potatoes  the  figures  are  222^/2  in  Ger- 
many, 113  in  the  United  States,  121  in  Russia,  no  in 
France  and  171 in  Canada. 

Still  more  remarkable  are  the  figures  for  the  sugar- 
beet  crop.  In  the  season  of  18S8/89  the  Gemian  fac- 
tories worked  up  about  8  million  tons  of  beets  into  i  mil- 
lion tons  of  sugar,  requiring  7.97  lbs.  of  beets  for  I  lb. 
of  sugar.  In  1910/11  about  16  million  tons  of  beets 
were  used  and  furnished  over  2'/:  millions  tons  of  sugar, 
or  exactly  6.08  lbs.  of  beets  for  i  lb.  of  sugar.  In  the 
year  1912/13  Germany  produced  the  incredible  quantity 
of  almost  3  million  tons  of  sugar! 

The  significance  of  these  figures  is  simply  colossal ; 
they  demonstrate  that  German  ingenuity  during  the 
last  twenty-five  years  has  doubled  the  domain  of  the 
Empire  and  draws  from  its  soil  crops  which  other  coun- 
tries do  not  raise  from  twice  and  triple  the  acreage. 

For  many  of  the  figures  here  given,  I  am  indebted  to 
the  publication  by  Helfferich,  entitled  "Germany's  Nation- 
al Wealth,"  issued  on  the  occasion  of  the  Emperor's 
25th  Anniversary  of  his  reign. 

Germany's  enemies  in  discussing  the  reasons  for  this 
greatest  of  all  wars  pretend  that  the  books  by  Trcitschke. 
Nietzsche  and  Bernhardi  precipitated  the  conflagration. 
If  this  war  was  really  caused  by  a  book  it  is  in  my 
opinion  due  to  Helfferich's  triumphant  chant  of  German 
prosperity  which  must  have  filled  the  mind  of  the  English 
statesmen  with  envy  and  malice  and  must  have  contri- 
buted more  than  any  other  agency  in  convincing  England 
that  now  is  the  time  to  smash  Germany. 

Enormous  as  has  been  the  ])rogress  in  the  cultivation 
of  the  soil,  the  animal  industry  of  the  country  has  made 
equally  great  advances. 

This  has  resulted  in  a  wonderful  improvement  of  the 
breeds  of  farm  animals,  especially  of  cattle,  with  a  ma- 
terial improvement  in  the  quality  and  quantity  of  meat 
and  milk. 

In  1883  the  census  showed  3^-4  million  horses,  in  1912 
over  4>4  million;  the  cattle  in  1883  numbered  almost 
16  million,  in  1912  over  20  million:  of  pigs  there  were 
9  million  in  1883,  and  22  milHon  in  1912.    Only  the  num- 


9 


ber  of  sheep  decreased  from  20  million  in  1883  to  6  mil- 
lion in  1912  for  the  reason  that  pasture  land  is  very  scanty 
in  Germany,  all  the  arable  soil  being  utilized  for  inten- 
sive farming. 

To  feed  these  animals,  to  which  must  be  added  about 
4  million  goats  in  1912  and  almost  85  million  fowls,  is 
an  immense  task. 

In  spite  of  the  most  careful  utilization  of  the  waste 
products  of  the  flour  mills,  the  sugar  and  starch  factories, 
the  brewing  and  distillery  industries,  Germany  is  unable 
to  feed  her  farm  animals  except  by  importing  about 
250  million  dollars  worth  of  fodder  consisting  especially 
of  barley,  bran,  maize  and  oilcake,  and  this  supply  is 
practically  cut  off  during  the  war. 

But  Germany  can  easily  make  up  any  deficiency  in 
fodder  by  means  of  potatoes,  of  which  last  year  she 
raised  50  million  tons,  and  sugarbeets,  which  it  will  be 
impossible  to  utilize  for  the  manufacture  of  sugar  to  the 
same  extent  as  in  former  years  on  account  of  the  lack 
of  export  facilities.  It  will  also  become  necessary  to 
carefully  husband  the  leaves  and  tops  of  the  sugarbeets 
and  the  leaves  of  turnips  which  have  been  more  or  less 
wasted  in  the  past.  But  above  all,  great  attention  must 
be  paid  to  kitchen  garbage,  for  if  this  be  returned  to 
the  farm  there  will  be  an  abundance  of  fodder  and  hence 
a  satisfactory  production  of  meat. 

The  value  of  this  offal  is  shown  by  the  results  of  an 
investigation,  according  to  which  the  kitchen  waste  of 
Berlin  alone  would  feed  annually  J4  million  of  pigs,  that 
is,  20%  of  all  pigs  slaughtered  in  that  city  in  1913. 

Besides  being  blessed  with  bountiful  crops  of  cereals, 
potatoes  and  fruit  in  the  year  of  the  war,  the  outbreak 
of  hostilities  found  Germany  with  the  largest  supply 
of  live  stock  that  breeders  have  ever  known,  the  raising 
of  which  had  been  encouraged  by  previous  high  market 
values  and  good  harvests. 

Germany  has,  therefore,  an  abundance  of  bread-cer- 
eals, potatoes  and  meat  which  constitute  the  most  im- 
portant articles  of  diet  of  its  people.  It  is  now  incum- 
bent upon  the  government  to  cause  the  population  to  hus- 
band its  food  resources  in  such  a  manner  that  until  the 
next  crop  there  shall  be  no  want. 

The  first  steps  taken  in  this  direction  were  laws  provid- 
ing for  duty  free  admission  and  prohibition  of  exportation 
of  all  materials  of  food,  cereals,  cattle,  meat,  fodder,  oils 
and  fats,  etc.    Next  regulations  were  issued  concerning 


10 


the  production  and  consumption  of  "the  staff  of  life," 
bread.  In  late  years,  unfortunately,  the  German  people 
have  largely  adopted  the  perfectly  white  wheat  bread, 
which  as  regards  nutritive  properties  is  greatly  infer- 
ior to  bread  made  from  the  darker  whole  wheat  Hour  or 
from  rye  flour.  The  reason  for  this  is  that  the  bran  and 
gluten,  which  contain  the  highly  nutritious  albumen,  liave 
been  removed  on  account  of  their  dark  color.  Com- 
pletely white  wheat  flour  contains  only  10.2%  albumen, 
while  the  coarser  quality  contains  12, 06^0  and  rye 
11.57%.  As  gluten  and  bran  cannot  be  ground  as  fine  as 
wheat  or  starch,  the  finer  sieves  will  not  allow  these  sub- 
stances to  pass  through.  This  does  not  apply  to  the 
whitest  constituents  of  flour,  and  therefore,  the  finer  the 
sieves  the  larger  the  residue  and  the  smaller  the  yield 
of  flour,  this,  as  already  stated,  being  also  less  nutri- 
tious owing  to  the  absence  of  the  coarser  gluten  and  bran. 

Bearing  this  in  mind,  the  German  government  on 
October  28,  1914  issued  rules  to  the  miller  to  increase 
the  yield  of  flour  so  that  100  lbs.  of  wheat  would  furnish 
at  least  75  lbs.  of  flour,  and  100  lbs.  of  rye  at  least  72  lbs. 
of  flour.  This  regulation  alone  very  materially  increases 
the  supply  of  flour  from  the  available  wheat  and  rye.  As 
rye  and  wheat  possess  practically  the  same  nutritive 
value,  the  only  difference  being  that  the  white  color  of 
the  latter  is  more  pleasing  to  the  eye,  the  availability  of 
these  two  cereals  as  food  may  be  considered  together. 

Last  year  the  consumption  of  wheat  per  head  was  90.6 
kilo,  of  rye  147.9,  and  of  both  238.5  kilo.  For  wheat  a 
deficiency  of  26.6  kilo  must  be  registered  to  be  made 
good  by  importation,  while  rye  showed  an  excess  of  17 
kilo  which  was  exported.  Accordingly,  there  is  a  net 
lack  of  g.6  kilo  which,  considering  the  total  consump- 
tion of  wheat  and  rye  of  238.5,  is  entirely  negligible.  Yet 
the  German  government  is  doing  everything  in  its  power 
to  make  up  even  so  slight  a  deficiency.  It  forbids  the 
exportation  of  rye  and  rye  flour  and  the  use  of  wheat  and 
rye  for  fodder.  To  make  the  supply  of  wheat  which  fur- 
nishes the  whitest  flour  last  longer,  it  rules  that  at  least 
10%  of  rye  flour  and  at  least  5%  of  potato  meal,  which 
quantity  may  be  increased  to  20%,  must  be  added.  The 
use  of  5%  of  potato  meal  is  amply  sufficient  to  make  up 
the  lack  of  9.6  kilo  per  head  of  the  238.5  total  con- 
sumption. 

Elaborate  investigations  have  shown  that  bread  made 
of  flour  mixed  as  above  is  just  as  palatable  as  bread  made 


II 


of  the  finest  wheat  liour  and  much  more  nutritious.  Uus, 
which  is  called  "K"  bread,  is  now  generally  con- 
sumed, and  there  is  no  doubt  that  it  will  retam  its  popu- 
iarily  even  after  peace  has  been  declared.  In  whiteness 
it  differs  very  little  from  pure  wheat  bread  as  potato 
meal  itself  is  even  whiter  than  wheat  flour. 

Great  stress  is  laid  on  combating  the  prejudice  against 
potatoes  as  a  general  food.  This  material,  of  which  an 
almost  limitless  supply  is  on  hand,  is  a  most  digestible 
and  valuable  article  of  diet.  Physiological  experiments 
have  again  and  again  demonstrated  the  fact  that  even 
an  exclusive  diet  of  potatoes  and  fat  enables  men  to  en- 
gage in  hard  work  and  retain  perfect  health  without  loss 
of  weight. 

Modern  improvements,  such  as  the  preservation  of 
potatoes  in  the  form  of  dried  chips,  protect  them  against 
deterioration  and  decomposition  and  make  the  year's 
crop  available  for  a  long  time  thereafter.  This  new  dry- 
ing industry  has  been  particularly  fostered  by  the  govern- 
ment which  recognized  the  immense  importance  of  pre- 
serving, and  thus  keeping  from  decay,  the  most  abundant 
food  supply  of  Germany.  Potato  chips  are  not  only  fit 
for  use  as  a  fodder,  but  also  for  human  consumption. 

After  having  thus  efliciently  provided  for  the  bread- 
stuff supply  of  the  country,  the  government  fixed  maxi- 
mum prices  on  all  cereals  in  the  most  scientific  manner, 
keeping  in  mind  the  conditions  of  transportation  by  rail 
and  water,  the  places  of  production,  the  local  markets 
of  rural  or  urban  communities.  In  this  way  speculation 
with  these  necessities  of  life  is  avoided ;  and  by  varying 
the  maximum  prices,  the  use  of  cereals  for  the  purposes 
for  which  they  are  best  adapted,  is  assured. 

Of  great  interest  is  the  clever  way  in  which  the  govern- 
ment is  enforcing  the  use  of  barley  as  fodder  for  which 
it  is  more  suitable  than  the  forbidden  rye  and  wheat.  For 
the  various  provinces  the  maximum  price  of  barley  is  15 
to  20  Marks  per  ton  lotvcr  than  that  of  rye.  Consequently, 
it  is  profitable  for  the  farmer  to  sell  rye  at  the  higher 
price  and  to  purchase  the  cheaper  barley  for  his  stock, 
rye  being  thus  made  available  for  human  consumption. 

To  further  increase  the  use  of  rye  as  a  food  the  govern- 
ment restricted  the  quantity  to  be  employed  in  the  fer- 
mentation industry  to  60%  of  the  normal  amount.  This 
reduction  carried  with  it  a  very  appreciable  decrease  of 
the  quantity  of  barley  used  in  the  distilleries,  where,  in 
the  form  of  malt,  it  is  of  extreme  importance.  Though 


12 


this  cereal  is  equally  necessary  in  the  brewing  iiiduslries. 
the  fact  that  the  majority  of  the  beer  consumers  are  at  the 
front  will  lead  to  a  smaller  consumption  of  malt  bever- 
ages and  therefore  of  barley. 

The  barley  thus  saved  will  be  highly  welcome  as  fod- 
der, and  it  is  estimated  that  at  least  io%  of  the  total 
quantity  of  material  used  as  food  for  animals,  which  is 
ordinarily  imported,  will  be  thus  replaced. 

In  England  by  artificial  manipulation  and  speculation 
the  price  of  a  4  lb.  loaf  of  bread  rose  from  5  d.  (loc.) 
at  the  beginning  of  the  war  to  -jy.  d.  (15c.)  on  January 
9>  1915.  while  today  German  bread,  which  is  just  as  nu- 
tritious and  palatable,  can  be  purchased  at  the  same  or 
even  a  lower  price  than  that  at  which  it  was  sold  before 
the  war. 

As  the  London  Times  of  January  9,  1915,  says: 
"In  the  deliberate  opinion  of  grain  dealers  the 
price  of  bread  in  this  country  has  not  since  the 
war  been  raised  in  proportion  to  the  rise  in  wheat 
and  flour.  That,  strange  as  it  may  seem  at  first, 
is  attributed  to  the  fact  that  the  London  baking 
trade  was,  at  any  rate  on  the  outbreak  of  war, 
largely  in  the  hands  of  Germans.  The  German 
bakers  were  not  disposed  to  advance  their  prices 
quickly,  lest  their  action  might  be  misunder- 
stood." 

Another  German  atrocity  I 

In  starving  Belgium  on  January  5th,  one  loaf  of  bread 
weighing  one  kilo  sold  at  40  Centimes,  that  is,  about 
8  cents.  The  same  quantity  of  rye  bread  costs  in  New 
York  12.4  cents  and  wheat  bread  14  cents. 

The  General  Federation  of  Trades  Unions  in  the  United 
Kingdom,  recognizing  the  forethought  shown  by  the  Ger- 
man government  in  husbanding  the  food  resources  of  the 
empire,  issued  a  document  in  which  it  demands  that  the 
British  government  should  commandeer  the  zvhole  home 
grown  and  unmarketed  ivheat  supply  at  a  certain  maxi- 
mum price.  The  document  states  that  immediate  action  on 
these  lines  would  tend  to  moderate  prices. 

Frightened  by  the  rise  of  wheat  prices  and  of  flour 
the  chairman  of  the  Clean  Food  Club,  of  Chicago,  an 
nounced  that  white  bread  is  a  liabit.  Women  should  de- 
clare an  embargo  against  it  and  use  rye.  corn,  potato 
and  brown  bread  instead — exactly  the  same  measures 
which  Germany  devised  for  the  welfare  of  her  people — 
yet  the  subsidized  Anglo-American  press  has  failed  to 


13 


inform  us  that  famine  and  starvation  are  reienine  in 
Great  Britain  and  the  United  States. 

During  all  this  time  an  organization— the  German 
War  Grain  Company— formed  by  prominent  bankers 
and  capitalists,  acquired  all  bread  cereals  offered  in  the 
open  market,  with  the  idea  to  store  it  until  next  summer 
Ihen  when  supposedly  the  scarcity  would  be  greatest 
the  accumulated  foodstuff  was  to  be  sold  at  prices  netting 
the  shareholders  5%  profit.    But  these  purchases  and 
those   for  prompt   consumption   became   smaller  and 
smaller,  because  the  holders  of  grain  were  not  satisfied 
with  the  profits  to  be  made  at  the  prevailing  maximum 
prices,    rhey  hoped  that  the  latter  would  be  raised  in 
tiic  near  future.    This  policy  threatened  a  complete  with- 
drawal of  cereals  from  the  market  so  that  the  bakers 
and  the  people  at  large  might  not  be  able  to  buy  for  their 
actual  needs. 

There  the  government  stepped  in  again,  and  on  Feb- 
ruary 1st,  the  supply  of  bread  cereals  was  taken  over 
by  the  authorities  to  be  sold  at  strictly  regulated  prices 
in  appropriate  quantities. 

Concerning  the  meat  supply,  which  is  so  plentiful  the 
governnient  has  so  far  issued  no  regulations  As  stated 
before,  Germany  had  the  greatest  supply  of  live  stock  in 
her  history  at  the  start  of  the  w^ar.  u'nVoubte^J  f  ?a7g  " 

bee^  sT.n  l  f  conditions  hfve 

been  slaughtered  during  the  last  five  months  owing  to  the 
fear  of  a  rise  ,n  the  price  of  fodder.  ConseqVently 
prices  of  meat  are  at  present  kept  low,  but  the  feTr  may 
be  justified  that  its  present  abundance  has  depleted  Tie 

"n  m'  f '  "'^'^  ^  shortage  of  nit 

»  the  future^  Nothing  of  the  kind,  however  is  likely 
to  happen^  The  Germans  are  today  the  heaviest  mea^ 
S  ^"^P^^^'"^  the  English,  the  fi^re 

Sr^'^  P^^-^^ny  to  47.6  kilo  in  England,  while 

Italy  consiimes  only  10.4.  If  need  be,  the  per  capita  con- 
sumption ,n  Germany  might  be  easily  reduced^Shout 
any  injury  to  health,  especially  if  we  bear  in  mind  tha 
.n  1900  the  per  capita  consumption  was  ont  4T4  So 
and  m  1879  only  29.5  kilo.  Yet  the  population  in^  1870 
was^in  every  respect  as  healthy  and  wefi  fed  as  that  in 

Regarding  the  German  supply  of  edible  fats  it  is  to 
be  noted  that  there  has  been  a  great  waste  of  f-^  s  and 
oils  m  the  kitchens  of  Germany.\nd  aTtoeether  the  cI 
sumption  of  fat  is  excessively  arge  ^'^^  ^O"" 


Economies  can  be  easily  practiced  and  thus  a  good 
deal  of  the  edible  oils  imported  from  the  United  States 
(to  the  value  of  23  million  dollars  in  the  year  1913)  may 
be  saved.  It  must  also  be  remembered  that  butter  is  now 
as  freely  imported  as  heretofore  from  Denmark  and 
Sweden,  from  which  large  supplies  of  especially  fattened 
pigs  are  also  obtainable. 

Again,  a  modern  development  in  the  fat  and  oil  in- 
dustry has  provided  Germany  with  means  to  utilize  ma- 
terials which  hitherto  were  unfit  for  eating. 

By  the  so-called  method  of  hardening  fats  and  oils — 
that  is,  by  treating  them  with  hydrogen — they  are  not 
only  converted  from  the  cheap  liquid  into  the  higher 
priced  solid  form,  but  their  taste  and  odor  are  so  improved 
that  they  might  serve  for  culinary  purposes,  while  with- 
out being  subjected  to  the  hardening  process,  they  could 
not  possibly  be  thus  employed.  Even  the  various  grades 
of  fish  oils  can  thus  be  rendered  available  as  food  ma- 
terials. Germany  cannot  possibly  be  cut  olT  from  the 
supply  of  these  oils.  The  fisheries  of  the  Baltic  and  the 
North  Sea,  of  Norway  and  Sweden  would  place  an  in- 
exhaustible and  cheap  source  of  fats  and  oils  at  the  dis- 
posal of  the  German  people. 

By  this  hardening  process  even  the  waste  fats  (foots) 
obtained  in  refining  can  be  utilized  not  only  for  soap 
making,  but  also  for  foodstuffs.  In  short,  by  suitable 
treatment  with  hydrogen,  all  oleaginous  matter  may  be 
converted  into  edible  substances. 

Regarding  the  milk,  butter  and  cheese  supply,  we  may 
add  that  Germany,  according  to  Rubner,  has  at  present 
about  II  million  milch  cows  producing  1150  ccni.  of 
milk  per  capita  each  day,  while  the  average  consumption 
is  only  341  ccm.,  in  addition  to  uS  grams  of  cheese  and 
7.8  grams  of  butter. 

It  is,  therefore,  obvious  that  Germany  has  a  super- 
fluity in  this  class  of  foods.  If  the  consumption  of  but- 
ter be  reduced  by  i  gram  per  person,  the  savmg  would 
amount  to  about  25,000  tons  of  butter  per  year,  equal  to 
about  750,000  tons  of  milk.  In  view  of  the  fact  that 
each  milch  cow  produces  annually  2.500  liters  of  milk, 
or  approximately  2^^  tons,  300,000  animals  could  be 
killed  for  food  purposes  without  interfering  seriously 
with  the  milk  supply.  ,  .  , 

In  addition  to  this  abundance  of  bread,  potatoes,  meat 
and  dairy  supplies,  it  is  to  be  noted  that  Germany  pos- 
sesses in  sugar  a  most  welcome  article  of  food.    <  )t  the 


15 


production  of  1913/14,  a  considerable  quantity  has  been 
retained  in  the  country,  and  in  the  season  of  19 14/ 15  a 
supply  of  23^  million  tons  became  available  for  the 
people.  Of  what  tremendous  value  this  mass  of  food 
will  be,  appears  from  the  fact  that  the  per  capita  con- 
sumption of  sugar  in  England  in  1913  was  40  kilo,  while 
in  (jermany  it  was  only  21  kilo.  This  large  sugar  supply, 
together  with  the  bountiful  crop  of  fruit  which  Germany 
enjoyed  last  year,  permitted  the  manufacture  of  immense 
(|uantities  of  jams  and  marmelades,  the  food  value  of 
which  will  be  enormous.  This  will  be  especially  appreci- 
ated in  view  of  the  possibility  of  a  scarcity  of  edible 
fats,  since  2  lbs.  of  sugar  are  equivalent  in  food  caloric 
value  to  I  lb.  of  butter — the  highest  priced  fatty  food. 
The  immense  stores  of  sugar  will  also  permit  its  use  as 
fodder  by  mixing  six  parts  of  oats  with  one  part  of 
sugar,  and  you  can  imagine  how  pleasing  this  war 
feed  will  be  to  the  horses.  This  stretching  of  the  oats 
supply  will  make  tiie  latter  cereal  available  for  human 
consumption  as  oatmeal,  grits,  etc. 

It  might  also  be  mentioned  that  Germany  has  an  abund- 
ant sujjply  of  salt  which  plays  such  an  important  part 
in  nutrition. 

Then  again  we  must  consider  that  even  in  a  country 
so  highly  developed  as  Germany  there  are  still  resources 
locked  up  and  materials  wasted  which,  if  properly  util- 
ized, may  add  to  the  nation's  food  supply. 

There  are  a  number  of  plants — at  present  for  the 
most  part  undesirable  weeds,  but  formerly  used  as  vege- 
tables and  salads — which  might  today  again  serve  for 
culinary  purposes.  To  these  plants  belong  the  various 
species  of  dandelions  and  of  urticaria,  which  are  still  in 
use  today,  especially  in  Russia,  where  the  young  plant  is 
esteemed  as  a  vegetable  and  the  matured  is  utilized  as 
fodder  for  cattle.  Besides  there  are  the  different  species 
of  sorrel  furnishing  salads  very  popular  in  France ;  the 
sage,  plantains,  and  cress,  all  of  which  find  uses  in  the 
kitchens  of  some  countries. 

The  yeast  of  the  fermentation  industries,  of  which 
Austria-Hungary  alone  produces  about  30  thousand  tons, 
has  been  allowed  to  run  to  waste,  although  it  represents 
a  nutrient  of  highest  value,  its  albumen  content  being 
equivalent  in  calories  to  meat  albumen. 

It  may  be  employed  as  an  addition  to  soups,  sauces 
and  stews  and  is  altogether  an  excellent  dietetic  food 
for  underfed  and  convalescent  people.    Except  its  use 


16 


at  present  by  the  German  military  administration  for 
soup-conserves  and  as  a  strengthening  addition  to  the 
soldier's  bread,  this  valuable  materiarproduced  in  such 
immense  quantities  is  totally  discarded. 

During  the  war  the  breweries  of  Austria-Hungary 
have  decided  to  furnish  their  yeast  gratis  to  the  popu- 
lation. 

In  the  sulphite  paper  process  there  are  obtained  an- 
nually 600,000  tons  of  waste  liquors  that  now  vitiate 
the  vyater  of  the  rivers  into  which  they  are  conducted, 
kill  fish  and  spread  bad  odors,  making  the  adjoining 
districts  uninhabitable.  These  liquors,  however,  contain 
sugar  which  is  formed  from  the  intercellular  substance 
of  the  wood.  Recent  investigations,  especially  those 
by  Konig,  the  famous  German  food  chemist,  seem  to 
indicate  that  the  utilization  of  this  waste  as  a  material 
of  food  is  near  at  hand. 

We  thus  see  that  there  is  hardly  any  chance  of  starv- 
ing Germany  into  submission  and  into  a  dishonorable 
peace,  provided  the  people  exercise  ordinary  care  in 
attending  to  their  wants.  The  government  has  surely 
done  its  duty ;  what  is  left  must  be  done  by  communities 
and  individuals.  It  is  wonderful  to  note  how  all  classes 
rose  to  contribute  to  this  end. 

The  municipal  authorities  are  providing  empty  lots 
and  useless  fjarden  plots  for  the  raising  of  peas,  beans 
and  lentils.  Strange  to  say,  peas  and  lentils,  which  have 
constituted  such  an  important  element  in  the  diet  have 
entirely  disappeared  from  the  German  markets,  as  they 
were  mostly  imported  from  Russia.  The  same  au- 
thorities have  arranged  that  parts  of  the  icehouses  con- 
nected with  the  breweries  be  reserved  for  the  storing 
of  fresh  meat  and  of  smoked  and  pickled  provisions. 
In  this  way  the  live  stock  killed  during  the  winter  owing 
to  the  unwarranted  fear  of  lack  of  fodder  will  he  pre- 
served for  the  spring  and  simimer.  Arrangements  have 
also  been  made  to  purchase  supplies  of  seafood  during 
the  winter  and  to  preserve  them  for  the  summer  months 
by  salting  and  drying  and  storing  them  in  municipal 
warehouses. 

The  physicians  of  Germany  have  initiated  a  campaign 
for  spreading  modern  ideas  on  nutrition  among  the 
people.  What  will  be  emphasized  is  that  meat,  milk 
and  eggs  are  not  the  only  strengthening  foods ;  that  on 
the  contrary  an  exclusive  diet  of  this  kind  is  injurious. 
Vegetable  food  is  absolutely  necessary,  especially  in 


17 


public  institutions  like  hospitals,  prisons,  barracks,  etc. 
Children  are  to  be  taught  to  eat  salads,  fruits,  potatoes 

and  vegetables. 

Furthermore,  the  public  is  being  warned  against  the 
excessive  consumption  of  alcoholic  beverages,  especi- 
ally while  the  war  lasts,  so  that  the  raw  materials  em- 
jjloycd  in  the  fermentation  industries  may  be  used  as 
food. 

To  promote  moderation  in  the  use  of  alcoholic  drinks 
it  is  urged  that  restaurants  and  hotels  should  be 
closed  at  early  hours  and  opened  late. 

In  England  temperance  measures  have  likewise  been 
adopted  because  drunkenness  in  that  country  had  in- 
creased enormously  since  the  start  of  hostilities.  First 
of  all  an  extra  war  tax  on  beer  was  imposed.  Lloyd 
(jeorgc  anticipated,  of  course,  that  the  consumption  of 
beer  would  diminish,  but  he  did  not  expect  that  the  de- 
crease would  be  nearly  dotible  his  estimate.  Worse  still, 
the  consumers  of  malt  beverages  were  driven  to  ivhiskey 
drinking,  and  the  new  tax  had  the  totally  unexpected 
result  of  increasing  the  sale  of  spirits,  which  is  most 
marked  in  towns  and  cities. 

Public  iiouses  in  England  are  also  opened  later  in 
the  day  and  closed  earlier,  mainly  for  the  purpose  of 
preventing  as  far  as  possible  the  soldiers'  wives  from 
investing  their  separation  allowances  in  whiskey. 

When  it  was  found  that  this  restriction  of  the  drink- 
ing hours  had  no  other  effect  than  to  make  the  wife  of 
Tommy  Atkins  imbibe  faster  and  get  drunk  quicker,  the 
authorities  issued  orders  whereby  sodier's  wives  in  re- 
ceipt of  separation  allowances  were  required  to  conform 
with  certain  standards  of  propriety  and  sobriety. 

.■\nd  liere  you  have  a  great  example  of  the  difference 
between  English  and  German  culture  and  civilization. 
While  the  German  soldier's  wife  takes  care  of  her  chil- 
dren and  household,  and  in  the  hard  times  of  war  per- 
haps manages  to  do  some  additional  work,  thereby 
earning  an  extra  penny,  the  lazv  must  step  in  to  pre- 
vent the  wife  of  the  English  soldier  from  wasting  her 
allowance  by  getting  drunk  and  thus  neglecting  home 
and  family. 

Who  has  ever  seen  a  drunken  German  woman?  On 
the  other  hand,  who  will  ever  forget  the  spectacle  of 
drunken  women  lying  in  the  gutters  of  the  streets  of 
London,   Liverpool,   Manchester,   etc..   and   of  seeing 


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viragos  fighting  with  each  other  with  their  dresses  half 
off  their  bodies. 

That  is  English  culture  and  civilization ! ! 

The  public  itself  is  being  instructed  in  many  ways, 
and  housewives  especially  are  requested  to  practice 
precautionary  measures.  The  following  circular  pub- 
lished by  a  number  of  professors  of  political  economy 
and  physiology,  among  them  Wagner,  Schnioller,  Rubncr, 
Zuntz,  contains  advice  which,  on  account  of  its  funda- 
mental importance,  may  well  interest  those  countries 
which  are  not  involved  in  the  war: 

1.  Treat  all  nutritious  material  respectfully  and 
economically  and  use  carefully  every  utilizablc  refuse. 

2.  Eat  the  army  bread  (K  bread)  and  demand  it 
from  your  baker.  It  is  nourishing  and  as  palatable  as 
plain  rye  or  wheat  bread.  Potatoes  are  plentiful  but  the 
bread  cereals  will  suffice  only  if  from  lo  to  20%  of 
potatoes  are  baked  in  the  loaves  or  if  less  bread  and 
more  potatoes  are  eaten. 

3.  Reserve  the  wheat  bread,  such  as  rolls,  etc.,  for 
patients  and  invalids  and  restrict  particularly  the  use  of 
cake,  butter  cakes  and  other  pastry  to  the  lowest  limits, 
for  we  are  short  one-third  of  the  previously  necessary 
supply  of  wheat  and  wheat  flour. 

4.  Be  sparing  in  the  use  of  meat,  fat  and  butter. 
To  be  sure,  we  have  now  an  abundant  supply  of  cattle 
for  slaughter  because  many  farmers  no  longer  have  the 
fodder  formerly  imported.  But  that  is  no  reason  that 
one  should  now  consume  more  meat.  If  this  happens, 
the  supply  will  soon  become  very  scanty.  The  use  of 
meat,  fat  and  butter  should  be  restricted  now  so  that 
our  people  will  suffer  no  lack  at  a  later  time.  Whoever 
can,  should  lay  in  a  stock  of  preserved  provisions  (smok- 
ed ham  and  bacon  and  dried  sausages)  and  lard  for 
his  home  use,  but  should  do  so  deliberately  and  with- 
out precipitate  hurry. 

5.  The  bulk  of  the  food  must  be  formed  by  our 
indigenous  vegetable  material,  potatoes,  rye,  wheat,  oats, 
buckwheat,  vegetables,  fresh  and  preserved  fruit.  Sugar 
can  be  used  freely.  Sugar,  which  is  on  hand  in  almost 
excessive  quantities,  is  an  excellent  nutriment  and  a 
substitute  for  fat  and  butter.  In  addition,  one  should 
use  milk  and  cheese,  particularly  skimmed  milk  and 
skimmed  milk  cheese,  which  are  an  excellent  substitute 
for  meat  on  account  of  their  protein  contents. 


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Verily  in  these  times  of  high  cost  of  living  such  rules 
might  even  be  profitably  observed  by  our  population 
which  is  obliged  to  pay  for  the  necessities  of  life  more 
dearly  than  the  nations  at  war. 

What  can  be  grander  in  all  civilization  than  this 
wonderful  evolution  of  German  agriculture  which  under 
the  government's  fostering  care  is  now  providing  the 
necessities  of  life  for  70  million  people  in  a  country 
smaller  than  the  State  of  Texasf  The  development  of  this 
most  important  branch  of  all  human  pursuits  is  pri- 
marily due  to  the  sciences,  botany,  medicine  and  especial- 
ly chemistry.  The  original  researches  made  by  the  mem- 
bers of  these  professions — however  abstruse  and  theo- 
retical they  may  have  been — were  quickly  utilized  by 
the  practical  agriculturists,  among  whom  none  have  been 
quicker  to  learn  than  the  "Junkers,"  the  "East  Elbians," 
against  whom  the  hatred  of  Germany's  enemies  is  especial- 
ly directed ;  and  well  it  may  be,  for  these  "Junkers"  by 
their  hard  work  as  tillers  of  the  soil  have  mainly  solved 
the  problem  of  feeding  the  nation  when  cut  off  from  all 
foreign  supplies. 

But  the  greatest  credit  for  the  achievements  of  Ger- 
man agriculture  is  due  to  Emperor  William  II,  the 
wonderful  man  who  in  his  farsightedness  recognized 
before  all  others  the  absolute  necessity  of  raising  food 
for  the  nation  within  its  own  domain,  who  reconciled 
the  interests  of  agriculture  with  the  everclashing  inter- 
ests of  industry,  and  who  in  spite  of  the  heavy  duties 
of  government  resting  upon  his  shoulders,  found  time 
to  deliver  public  lectures  on  the  original  investigations 
carried  out  under  his  guidance  regarding  the  culti- 
vation of  the  most  extensive  German  peat  or  turf-beds, 
the  object  of  which  was  to  increase  the  tillable  acre- 
age of  Germany,  thereby  augmenting  the  food  supply 
of  the  people  and  lowering  the  cost  of  living. 

410  Riverside  Drive 
new  york,  n.  y. 


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